Chapter 40
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When Layla got home, she slammed the door shut, locking it behind her. Dylan had no clue what was going on.
She skipped dinner and stayed in her room until Stephen came home. As soon as he walked in, she came out and said, “Stephen, I want to go to the company.”
Stephen wasn’t surprised. He looked at her determined expression and said, “If you want to go, no one’s stopping you.”
“No, I want to work there,” she insisted
He turned to her seriously. She was sitting at the table, but her food was untouched. “What exactly will you do there?”
“I’ll do what you do.”
Stephen replied calmly, “The company’s already got a CEO, and the vice president’s position is filled. We don’t need another executive.”
Layla stayed quiet, frowning. She stared at Stephen as if he could read her mind.
After a pause, Stephen said, “If you want to work at the company, you’ll follow my lead.”
She opened her mouth to speak, but he cut her off, speaking as if he already knew what she was going to say, “I’m not going to play any tricks on you. You’re just overthinking things. Believe me or don’t, it’s up to you.“!
He then calmly picked up his spoon and started eating
“Fine,” Layla agreed, sounding annoyed.
Stephen almost smiled. It was just a tad bit, but Layla noticed it. Frustrated, she picked up her fork and started eating too. She also kept quiet about her visit to Regina earlier that day.
Dylan, sensing the tension between them, quiddy ran off to play with the maid, avoiding the situation altogether.
Stephen went to his study to work, and Layla saw her chance. “If you’re not back before 10:00 pm, I’m locking the door,” she warned. “You won’t be able to get in.
At 9:59 pm, Layla sat on the bed, eagerly watching the clock Five, four, three, two…”
The door opened slightly. Stephen walked in and smiled. “I just made it before 10:00 pm,” he said with a grin.
Layla pouted and buried herself under the covers, frustrated,
Stephen laughed softly at her reaction, then took off his shirt and threw it over the couch. He grabbed his pajamas from the wardrobe and went into the bathroom, leaving Layla to fume in bed.
Layla picked up her phone and started texting her friends about her decision to start worlding.
“What? Layla, are you crazy?”
“Why the sudden change? Are you really going to start working?”
“Layla, what’s going on with you?”
Layla was surprised by how suddenly she felt this way, but it came after a long, serious thought session earlier that day. Regina’s words of her constant criticism of Stephen kept echoing in her mind.
No matter how stubborn she was, she couldn’t ignore how much Stephen had done for the Murray family–and for her. His skills were impressive, and they scared her a bit.
Layla had always targeted Stephen because she couldn’t beat him on her own merits. She resorted to unreasonable tactics instead.
She had tried to push him away, but she knew she couldn’t handle the Murray family by herself. Her grandfather was getting old, and it Stephen took over the Murray Group, there wouldn’t be much she could do about it.
If she pushed Stephen too far and he decided to leave for good, she needed to be able to possess some skulls and not be left with nothing to offer.
